


The Vacation

by SandyFeral



Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991)
Genre: Gen, I don’t know how to use tags here yet help, M/M, Minor Violence, like nothing permanent but it’s there
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-07-21
Packaged: 2020-04-24 05:06:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19166413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SandyFeral/pseuds/SandyFeral
Summary: After having enough of Negaduck’s plans, the fearsome four decide to finally say no to him. Unfortunately it backfires and they are now being hunted down by the demented duck. There’s only so many places they can go in St. Canard, so they decide it might be time to take a vacation.





	1. A really bad plan

**Author's Note:**

> This is attempt at making a more light-hearted, less shipping heavy fanfic. I tried to make my writing a bit more like that of the show (though I don’t know if I was at all successfull).

Now they had really done it. This certainly hadn’t been the first time the fearsome four had made Negaduck angry, but it had been different before. Previously, no matter how they had plotted against him, or screwed up his plans, or swore that they would never work for him again, eventually Negaduck would find them again. Every time he came to them, individually, of course, since it made them more vulnerable, they would concede to work with him again, as most of them knew there would be consequences if they didn’t. He made sure that they knew that. Whether the consequences in question were for them, or their respective partner in crime, they were always there. 

But for once, just one time, the fearsome four had had enough. They had put their foot down, and refused to cooperate with him. Really, they shouldn’t have been surprised it went as badly as it had.

The moment one of them said “no,” they could see it starting. Rage was almost visible, simmering behind Negaduck’s eyes.

“What did you say?” He asked.

A growling started deep in his throat. Every time one of the four voiced their refusal, it only intensified. Bushroot’s defiance was the one the finally caused him to snap.

Before any of them knew what happened, a chainsaw slashed through the air. The plant matter of Bushroot’s middle was sliced clean in half, and the sound of startled screaming filled the air. It only got worse from there.

A few minutes later, Megavolt and Quackerjack were running through the streets. Liquidator was slightly in front of them with half of Bushroot in his arms, moving with ease at a fast pace but still restraining himself so as not to lose the others.

“Who’s brilliant idea was it to say no to him?” Megavolt asked. 

“This plan was brought to you by not one, but all four members of the fearsome five!” Liquidator said.

“Yeah, I didn’t hear you arguing when we came up with the idea,” Bushroot chimed in. 

“Well it was going great until you said something Bushbrain!” Quackerjack said.

“Q-Quit complaining! You’re not the one who got chopped in half!”

Bushroot winced as he forced his torso to grow. Making or expanding limbs was less painful than re-growing them, and much faster. His breathing became heavier, and Liquidator gave him a concerned look.

“Doing ok there Reggie?” He asked softly.

“Oh, ah-I think so. J-Just takes a while!” Bushroot responded.

There was a ground-shaking “BOOM” behind them, and they heard the roar of an engine getting louder.

“He’s gaining on us!” Quackerjack cried.

“That baby can go real fast when she gets going, there’s no way we can outrun her for long!” Megavolt shouted.

“I wish you hadn’t agreed to build that thing for him,” Bushroot said.

“I wish I hadn’t let him keep it,” Megavolt lamented. “She was so gorgeous before he added that yellow and red. And such a nice engine…”

“The Liquidator will not be caught! If I have to leave you two behind I will, but I can easily evade him!”

Quackerjack and Megavolt exchanged a look. After a few moments, Quackerjack smiled.

“Sounds like it’s time for a game of hide-and-seek! We’ll be harder to catch if we split up!” Quackerjack said.

“Excellent idea!” Without another word, Liquidator surged sideways, into an alleyway, and was out of sight in seconds.

“See you later Sparky!” Quackerjack somersaulted away, leaving Megavolt alone.

“Aw man…” Megavolt grumbled.

Another explosion went off, this one much closer. Panicking, Megavolt scrambled into an alleyway. Seeing a ladder, he jumped onto a nearby dumpster and climbed it to the apartments fire escape.

“You think you can hide from me Sparky?” Negaduck’s voice rang out. 

Megavolt cringed at the sound of the hated nickname, now even worse when heard from Negaduck. He noticed one of the apartments had an open window, and without thinking, climbed in through it. After shutting it behind him, he turned to see there was a woman, dressed in a bathrobe standing right behind him.

It only took a second of the woman’s screaming before Megavolt’s hand clamped down over her mouth.

“Hey quiet down would you? I’m trying to hide!” Megavolt said.

He removed his hand from the woman who was now shocked into silence, and moved over to another window that was facing the street. Trying to show as little of himself as possible, he peered out of the window.

Sure enough, he saw the vehicle he had built for Negaduck passing by. It pained him to see her being driven by that maniac. From the sound of her engine that psychotic duck was being way too hard on her. In about a minute, it had passed. Megavolt let out a sigh of relief.  
After another minute, he walked back past the woman, who was now simply staring at him in shock, and made his way to the window.

“Thanks for letting me hide in your place for a bit!” Megavolt opened the window with one arm, causing a soft clinking sound from the bag he now carried. “Oh and I’m keeping these!”  
As he climbed back out the window, he held up the bag he had picked up from the woman’s couch so she could see. The lightbulbs inside rattled as they were moved from the woman’s field of vision and carried back down the fire escape, out to the streets, all the way to one of Megavolt’s hideouts.


	2. Regrowth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Liquidator and Bushroot have to deal with the consequences of the plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn’t exactly necessary to the story but I always like writing Liquidator and Bushroot so

Liquidator ducked in through the greenhouse’s entrance.

“Y-You can put me down somewhere,” Bushroot said.

After making his way over to one of the nearby trees, Liquidator placed him down on their branches, which had stretched out so they could hold their friend.

“Thanks,” Bushroot said.

He still couldn’t stand on his own as his regrowth still wasn’t fully complete. He wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that right after chopping him in half, Negaduck had tried to set him on fire. The plant’s blood was very flammable, if Liquidator hadn’t been there he could be ashes right now.

“Is there anything you need?” Liquidator asked. “The Liquidator can provide a convenient pair of legs if you need it!” 

“Oh yeah.” Bushroot pointed further into the greenhouse. “There’s a red test tube on one of the tables, that sometimes helps me regenerate. Just be careful not to drop it, I don’t have much of it left.”

As Liquidator slid away to get the formula Bushroot tried once more to regrow and let out a small whimper as pain shot through him.

“D-Do you really think that it was my fault he got that angry?” He asked. 

“Of course not!” Liquidator reassured him. “In fact, if I had to guess, I’d say the Liquidator was much more at blame for his attempt to kill us, due to the fact I tried to drown him after he attempted to set you on fire. Though it’s possible that we’re all to blame since it was inevitable he’d be mad when we refused to follow orders.”

“This was a terrible plan…” Bushroot groaned. “I told them this would end badly a-and look what happened!”

Liquidator returned with the test tube in hand. “Well we’re safe now. I think this plan was still somewhat of a success! After all, do you think Negaduck will be asking us to act as his henchmen after this?”

“I guess not.” Bushroot took the test tube and downed it in one gulp. A tingly feeling spread through him, and he could feel himself begin to regrow naturally. “I dunno, I just don’t think I want to be on the bad side of a guy like that.”

“I can't say I think we were ever on his good side either. Besides, is there anyone in the whole of Saint Canard who isn’t on Negaduck’s bad side?” 

“Heh, I guess not.” Bushroot finally smiled. “And they don’t have someone like you protecting them.”

“Someone like me huh? And how would the Liquidator’s most faithful customer describe ‘someone like me?’”

“I-I’d say, they’d be brave, and strong, and always there for me. The kind of guy who’d save my tail more than once, like you did today.” Bushroot blushed slightly. “And handsome too.”

“What a flattering testimonial!” 

“Entirely truthful, of course!”

Liquidator smiled, but it quickly faded. He looked down to where Bushroot had been sliced in two. Despite his bottom half being mostly regrown due to the formula he had ingested, he could still see charred bits of the plant’s skin.

“You should sleep Reginald,” Liquidator said softly.

“Oh I don’t need to do that.”

“Though rest is unnecessary to us studies show a good night's rest can reduce stress! It seems that might be useful right now.” 

“B-But we just got back! Isn’t there something else you’d rather be doing right now?”

Liquidator chuckled. “No, Reggie. You just regrew yourself, and while I don’t know as much about plants as you, I think you should let your body relax for a bit. We’ll have plenty of time later for anything you have in mind.”

“Fine.” Bushroot crosses his arms and lay flat on the tree branch beneath him. “But for the record, I’m doing this because you’re right about the regrowth stuff, not just because you told me to.”

“I’m sure you are.”  
…

It was the light that tipped Bud off. The flickering, burning red light outside the greenhouse and the distant sound of laughter. It wasn’t too long before he recognized the light for what it was.

Though Bud occasionally went to sleep when Bushroot did, this time it was a very good thing that he didn’t. If he had, he may not have had time to escape or put out the fire that Negaduck had started in the park outside of the hideout. Still, with Negaduck there, he felt that now might be a good time to retreat to his other usual hangout. A shaken Bushroot insisted to be taken with him.

It wasn’t too long before the two of them were making their way into the Saint Canard water works. Of course they couldn’t go Bud’s usual route, as it was a water-only entrance. 

“You live here?” Bushroot asked, looking around the dim, damp, cold area. “Not very homey is it?”

“Tired of being stuck as a concrete statue after your first attempt at villainy? Want to be out of sight? Try the Saint Canard waterworks! Even if someone comes down here I have plenty of ways to flush them out.”

“Sounds kind of lonely.”

“You like people, plants, and sunlight, Reggie. I myself am fine with pipes, plumbing, and a steady supply of water! Actually, the Liquidator never really settled in one place! I’m very flexible, I can move as I please!” He frowned. “Though with you I suppose that’s not exactly an option. At least not the same way it is for me. We’ll need some place to stay. And down here isn't great either. You need sunlight, and there’s the occasional maintenance man.” 

“Don’t you have anywhere else so go?”

“Do you have anywhere else to go?” Bud retorted.

That shut Bushroot up.

Bud sighed. “Look, we both lost access to a lot of places when we mutated. I used to be able to hide out at my old factory, but unfortunately Darkwing kicked me out when it was bought out by another company. And I haven’t kept in contact with many people I used to know, I don’t even have friends-”

“Actually we do sort of have friends,” Bushroot said.

“No offense Reggie, but you seem to have made it clear that you didn’t have friends. I personally wasn’t really concerned with making friends while running my business, so I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t mean old friends. I mean one of our-uh-new mutual friends,” Bushroot said. “You know one that wouldn’t mind if we…”

Bud smiled as comprehension dawned. “Oh! I think I understand exactly what you mean.”


	3. Out of options

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fearsome four realize how cornered they really are.

Quackerjack snuck along the streets of Saint Canard. Even with the cover of night’s darkness, he tried to stick to the less open areas to further ensure that he would remain unseen. When he began to pass a cluster of apartments, he began singing a little song under his breath. As he sang, he began pointing at a few features of the passing street, which would seem random to anyone who could not hear his lyrics.

“And if you need more proof, there’s boarded up windows,” he mumbled to a childish melody. “Remember it’s got a red roof, and bingo!”

After ending his song he found himself pointing at a two-story blue house with a light red roof. Passing right by the front door, Quackerjack made his way to a wooden fence which he quickly vaulted over. He hopped up a metal staircase on the side of the building to another door and pulled a small key from inside his hat. 

Soon he had slipped through the unlocked door and closed it behind it, breathing out a sigh of relief.

“Trying to find a place to hide?”

The voice made Quackerjack jump, and he looked around frantically in the dark apartment for the source of the noise, his bells jingling as his head turned.

“Don’t freak out,” said a different, but familiar voice. “It’s just us.”

One of the many strings of lightbulbs in the apartment lit up. In their light Quackerjack could clearly see Bushroot and Liquidator standing in the apartment in one of the few spaces not covered with plugged-in appliances. Or rather, Bushroot was standing. Liquidator had wrapped himself completely around Bushroot, seemingly trying to make himself as small as possible.

“What are you two doing here?” Quackerjack asked. “Also I know you two like to be close, but geez Liqui, I don’t think you need to be that close!”

“Want to get electrocuted? Because the Liquidator doesn’t!! You may like the occasional shock, but I don’t, so I’m staying away from all these electronics, where it’s safe.” Liquidator looked down at his soaked companion. “Which Just happens to be Reggie’s body.”

Bushroot wiped water out his eyes, though it continued to drip down from Liquidator’s form. “Believe me, if there was a better way to do this I’d love to try it. This isn’t exactly the most comfortable way we can be ‘close’, but we already got zapped once and I’d like to avoid it happening again.”

Quackerjack smirked. “Sounds like someone can’t handle a little electricity. But still, that doesn’t answer why you’re here.” He slipped his key back under his hat. “Sparky actually gave me a way to get in here for special occasions, but I didn’t even know you two knew about this place.”

“Who in our little group is actually good at keeping their ‘secret locations’ a secret?” Liquidator asked.

“Besides, we didn’t have a choice! W-we don’t really have anywhere else to go, and our normal hideout has been attacked,” Bushroot said.

“Well I don’t mind having a few extra playmates around,” Quackerjack said with a shrug. “But if Sparky finds out he may get a bit upset. You know how grumpy he can be sometimes.”

“What Megavolt doesn’t know won’t hurt him!” Liquidations said. “Anyway, he has other places to hide I’m sure we won’t be seeing him for a while!”

And at that moment the door opened. 

“What are you all doing here?!” Megavolt asked. “Especially you!” He pointed at Liquidator.

“We had n-nowhere else to hide fr-from Negaduck!” Bushroot said. “We barely escaped when he tried to-to burn down the greenhouse.”

“I was just telling them right now that you’d be upset!” Quackerjack said, sounding somewhat proud of himself.

“Hang on, how did you get in here??” Megavolt said, turning on Quackerjack.

“You gave me a key remember?”

“Oh yeah.” Megavolt’s tone calmed a bit. “I did didn’t I?”

“The Liquidator has a very good memory, and if I recall correctly, you said you had other places to hide out,” Liquidator said.

“I do! It’s just Negaduck found all of them.” Megavolt sighed. “In fact, usually I don’t come here unless there’s no one looking for me, or I have nowhere else to go. Specifically because it’s so easy to find, and break into.” He glared at his teammates at these last words.

“Wait, he’s found all of them?” Bushroot asked, worry audible in his voice. “D-Does that mean he’ll probably find us here too?”

“Well yeah!” Megavolt slumped against the wall. “Not that he’s personally tried to kill me every time, but being hunted down by a pack of rabid dogs isn’t much better. He’s had to find us so many times I’m pretty sure he knows about all of our hideouts.”

“Sparky’s right,” Quackerjack said. “I only came here cause I have nowhere else to go. I had to leave so fast I barely got to grab any of my toys either, so I’ll have to build new ones from scratch.”

“S-s you’re saying, none of us have anywhere to go, and he’ll definitely find us here?” Bushroot asked, starting to sound a little panicked.

“Yeah that’s exactly what he said,” Quackerjack retorted. “Weren’t you listening?”

“And it’s so hard to find a good hideout this time of year,” Megavolt mumbled absentmindedly. “Tourists all over the place during summer…”

“So basically, we’re totally screwed?!” Bushroot curled into a ball. “You guys should have listened to me when I told you this was a bad idea!”

“Well excuse me if some of us have a spine!” Megavolt said.

“What does it matter if you have a spine?” Bushroot said, his volume rising. “There’s a maniac trying to kill us, and there’s nowhere in all of Saint Canard we can hide!!”

“Well then, I think the answer is obvious!” Liquidator said.

Everyone turned to look at him.

Liquidator was now grinning widely. “Need a place to hide? Having trouble finding a good secret base in Saint Canard? Want to leave your troubles behind? Why not take a short vacation!”

“A vacation?” Megavolt’s eyes widened. “You mean outside of Saint Canard?”

“Think about it!” Liquidator had the smug look of a villain who had just come up with an excellent scheme. “No Negaduck, no wanted posters of our face plaster all over the streets, and best of all, no Darkwing Duck to stop us from committing crimes!”

“I’ve never really thought about leaving…” Megavolt said, scratching his head.

“Actually, I think this plan sounds like fun!” Quackerjack moved right next to Megavolt. “Think about it, a whole new city to make our playground! Full of unsuspecting saps who won’t know what hit them if we play our cards right!”

“I don’t know-”

“Think about all the poor innocent lightbulbs who have never had a taste of freedom,” Quackerjack said. “A whole new place where you could spread your message of liberation for electronics!”

Megavolt’s eyes widened. “Hey you’re right! Those poor bulbs deserve as much of a chance as the ones in this city!”

“That’s the spirit Sparky!” Quackerjack said, pulling his partner into a hug.

“And,” Liquidator placed a hand on Bushroot’s cheek. “Safety guaranteed! No longer will you need to worry about being cut in half!”

“I guess a vacation does sound nice,” Bushroot said. “Would be good to meet some new plants too. I’ve already talked to half the trees in this city.”

“Then it sounds like it’s settled!” Liquidator said. “It’s time for the fearsome four to take a vacation!”


	4. Traveling in style

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two pairs of criminals need to leave Saint Canard without being noticed. The way they leave however differs, and leads to the expression of a few concerns.

This was starting to get to Megavolt a little bit.

Megavolt and Quackerjack were on a boat, one that was regularly used by tourists to get to and from Saint Canard without having to use the traffic-ridden bridge. They had snuck onboard by stealing tickets from two unsuspecting passengers who were luckily the same species as the two criminals. Now they were heading to one of the nearby cities, surrounded by happy passengers chatting about some mundane thing or the other.  
But at the moment Megavolt was not exactly happy.

It was enough that anywhere he looked he could see miles of water, and the constant movement of the boat was beginning to make him a bit sick, and the sun was shining straight into his eyes, but Quackerjack’s incessant scratching was not helping.

“Will you stop that?” Megavolt asked

“Stop what?”

“Scratching your head, you’re making me itchy just looking at you.”

“I can’t help it,” Quackerjack pulled his hand away from his head and into a fist with visible effort. “Im not used to having my hat off, now my head’s all…” he made vague clawing motions around his scalp. “Itchy!”

“Yeah I know what you mean.” Megavolt tugged at his own clothes to hide the lightning shaped scars on his arm. “But there’s no way for us to be inconspicuous with you wearing that hat of yours.”

Quackerjack huffed. “You’d be surprised. A trench coat and a hat can do wonders.”

“On top of our normal clothes? In this weather?”

“Fair enough,” Quackerjack’s smile returned suddenly. “Oh, but I can’t wait to get back in my old clothes and wreak havoc in a new playground. Maybe the kids there will even have better taste in toys! Why didn’t I think of this before?”

“Well maybe for one,” Megavolt mumbled. “New city, unfamiliar streets, strangers everywhere. And crossing over all this water…” he looked down and shuddered slightly. “Not exactly my idea of a good time.”

“Aw c’mon, what’s wrong with new places?”

“I just don’t want to forget everything I left behind again,” Megavolt said quietly.

Quackerjack pulled the rodent closer to him. “Don’t be to down Sparky! You won’t forget anything while I’m here! And you know it, I can remind you of Saint Canard until you want to pull you hair out!”

“Ok, ok, don’t go overboard you loon.” Megavolt smiled. “I do have to admit it will be nice not to be cornered by Dipwing whenever I leave my hideout.”

“We can have nice long uninterrupted playdates without that nosy duck trying to but in!”

“No more ‘I am the terror that flaps in the night,’ or ‘I am the swimsuit that’s two sizes two small!’ Like geez, we get it, you’re all the most annoying parts of all our lives, do you have to announce it every time?”

“Ugh I know! Though it is nice of him to have an intro that’s long enough so we can have a decent warning.”

At that moment a large jet of water burst up from somewhere a few feet behind the boat only for the water to return to its normal mostly uninterrupted state only a few moments later.

“What are those two doing down there?” Megavolt asked.

“I don’t know,” Quackerjack said. “I don’t think I want to. Those two are so sappy.”

“Aren’t they though? Like geez do they have to be so-” Megavolt paused. “‘Sappy?’ Was that a pun?”  
“You know it!”

Megavolt snickered. “You should say that to his face. I bet he’ll go beet red.”

“I will. Those two can’t leaf each other alone for one second.”

“I think you’ve gotten to the root of the problem.”

The two began to laugh harder as they continued making bad puns. Minutes later they were in hysterics on the floor and people were starting to stare. Megavolt was the first to recover.

“Y’know maybe this vacation is what I need,” he said. “I forgot how relaxing it can be to take a break from the whole crime-hiding-prison cycle.”

“But that’s part of the fun of being a villain! It’s all just part of the game!”

“It’s a game to you it’s just life to me. I never really got to have a normal life, with my own house, my own job my own money,” Megavolt said. Suddenly his eyes widened. “Oh shit!”

Quackerjack looked up. “What is it?”

“If we’re gonna hide that means we need to lay low for a while. We’re probably gonna need to actually get a place to sleep and food and stuff without committing any serious crimes.”

Quackerjack tilted his head. “But pickpocketing and stealing from purses isn’t a major crime is it? It’s not even really a crime if we can get away with it.”

The two looked around them at women decked out in fancy jewelry and men with nice wristwatches, and designer handbags and backpacks left practically unattended on nearby chairs.

Megavolt smiled. “I think you’re right Quacky. That wouldn’t draw too much attention.”

…

A couple dozen feet below the boat, in a large bubble of air within the water, Liquidator led Bushroot across the bay’s floor.

“Want to travel while remaining unseen?” Liquidator said. “Try going underwater! It may not be the most popular method of travel, but it certainly has a few perks!”

“It does,” Bushroot looked up at the shadow of the boat above them. “Though I can’t say I’d mind having a ride.”

“You want a ride? Say no more!” Liquidator dropped into a puddle. After sliding underneath Bushroot’s feet, he reformed, bringing Bushroot up with him in his arms. “The Liquidator is happy to allow you to ride me any time, free of charge!”

“Oh Buddy, such a gentleman,” Bushroot said with a small laugh. “Thanks.”

“Well it is exactly what you wanted isn’t it? You know you can just ask for things directly right? I don’t sell everything, favors for my partner in crime will never come with a price!”

“Oh of course I know that,” Bushroot said. “I wasn’t trying to ask for that exactly I was just…” he sighed. “Nevermind. I appreciate it Buddy.”

“No, no, no, if you have a complaint with my services I want to hear it!” Liquidator insisted.

“It’s not a complaint with anything about you! It’s just w-well, it bugs me a bit that those two get to be up there, and we have to hide away down here.” 

“And what’s wrong with being down here?” Liquidator sound offended, but it was hard to tell if it was genuine or just for show. “Do you not enjoy spending some alone time with your favorite puddle puppy?”

“No, no, that’s not it!” Bushroot pulled himself closer to Liquidator. “It’s not that-that I don’t enjoy spending alone time with you. B-but sometimes I miss… being around o-other people.” He shot a quick glance at his own body. “Because I’m not… normal.”

Liquidator tilted his head. “Would you say that this method of travel is normal?” 

“No.”

“But look around you,” Liquidator gestured to the water around them. Above them the light could seen shining on the water's surface, and around them fish and underwater plants were visible. “I don’t know about you but I think this is a pretty nice view.”

“Yeah…”

“Do you think I’m normal?” 

“Well, y-you-”

“Of course I’m not!” Liquidator interrupted. “But you like me don’t you?”

“Y-Yes! I do! Of course I like you!”

“Well then, not to sound cliche, but being normal is very overrated! The people up there are missing out on wonderful and fascinating things like you and me, though they still get to deal with Megavolt and Quackerjack.” Liquidator smirked. “And if you ask me, those two, while I enjoy their company, can be trouble. Sanity-wise their normality is a bit questionable.”

Bushroot chuckled. “Well, you can say that again. They are a bit much to deal with.”

“Besides Reggie, the reason we need to hide isn’t entirely to do with being normal. It’s partly to do with the fact that we’re criminals.”

“Oh yeah. I kinda forgot.”

“You may forget, unfortunately, the law enforcement does not,” Liquidator said. “But all that aside, is it really that bad to be stuck down here with me?”

“No. I will admit, I’ve never been able to see underwater plants this close. So that kinda nice.”

“See! I told you this method of travel has its perks.”

“Uh, Buddy?”

“Yes?” Liquidator purred.

“Did you call yourself ‘puddle puppy’ earlier?”

“Uhh…” Liquidator gave a rare embarrassed smile. “I was looking for alliteration and that just… came out.”

“Can I call you that?” Bushroot asked with a grin.   
Liquidator laughed. “Absolutely not! You know our toy-enthused friend or either of those pesky masked mallards would never let me hear the end of it if you said that in front of one of them.”

“What about when we’re alone?”

“The answer is still no!”

“Aw c’mon…”

Liquidator let out a sigh, though his smile had not disappeared. “Okay, maybe occasionally, when we’re completely alone. But be careful Reggie, if you want to get into the embarrassing pet names game. I’ve been playing it much longer than you have.”

Bushroot began to turn pink. “Ok! I understand! I’ll keep that in mind.”


	5. Fashion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quackerjack helps the group find a way to blend in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This wasn’t really supposed to be a full chapter, it was supposed to be a transition, but it went on so long I decided to cut it off and post it. Still short but, it’s something!

Don’t commit any major crimes. Don’t be recognized. That was the objective. At least for the first few days. Of course that objective was much easier in a town where the police weren’t called every time a citizen saw them outside of their hideouts.

After about an hour of bickering, and after they recruited the two mutants in their mission to swipe a decent amount of money without drawing too much attention, Quackerjack and Megavolt decided on a hotel room to stay in, which would become their base of operations.  
“Are we all going to be staying here though?” Megavolt asked once they arrived at the room. “This place only has two beds.”

The group all looked at each other. After a moment Quackerjack finally cracked, letting out a snicker, and they all burst out into laughter. 

“Right!” Quackerjack said, cackling with laughter. “As if any of us care about that!”

“Aside from Megavolt’s aquaphobia, eight times out of ten the fearsome four has no problem invading each other’s privacy or personal space!” Liquidator said, still chuckling.

“Not as if any of us have something to hide right?” Bushroot said, though he had a nervous edge to his laughter.

“The Liquidator has nothing to hide! Even if I tried to hide something, in this close proximity you could see right through me!” At this a grinning Liquidator gestured to his clear body and elbowed Bushroot lightly, causing the plant to grimace at the pun.

“Well, enough about where we’re going to sleep, what are we going to do first?” Quackerjack asked, rubbing his hands together.

“Well remember,” Bushroot began. “We can’t-”

“Yeah, yeah, no big crimes, no wearing my costume, I get it! You don’t have to tell me a million times.” Quackerjack pouted. “What do you think I am, insane?”

Bushroot shot a glance at Liquidator who gave a small shrug in response.

“Ok, we all know he is, but I think he gets the idea,” Megavolt said. 

“Yeah, there’s gotta be some fun we can have in this place. At there very least I’m going off to get some new clothes, the stuff I nabbed off that tourist is so boring,” Quackerjack said, tugging at his shirt and sticking out his tongue.

“I’d love to go out, just to do anything.” Bushroot sighed. “Unfortunately I don’t think it’d go over very well without a good disguise.”

“I have to side with Reggie here!” Liquidator said. “Only half of our group is able to blend in with the average citizens of this city! And though the Liquidator can easily navigate undetected, the walking plant may be a little harder to miss.”

“That’s fine!” Quackerjack, said, jumping up. “You two can wait here while I grab us all some new outfits! Never a bad time for a shopping spree!” He grabbed Megavolt by the arm and dragged him to the door. “C’mon Sparky!”

“Why do I have to come?” Megavolt protested

“Do you want me to pick out all your clothes for you all on my own?” 

“Oh. Good point,” Megavolt conceded as he was dragged out the door.

“Uh, are we just going to let a jester, and the guy who straps a battery to his bad pick out our clothing?” Bushroot asked once the pair were gone.

“Actually, I can get around in nothing but a water bottle if I need to,” Liquidator said. “I think you’re the one who’s going to have to rely on those two to dress you.”

Bushroot sighed. “Great. So much for people not staring at me.”  
…

It was almost three and a half hours later when Megavolt and Quackerjack walked back into the hotel room. 

Bushroot was lying on the floor in a patch of sun from the open window, but immediately sat up when the two returned. “What took you two so long?”

“He got distracted,” Megavolt said. He paused before amending his statement. “We both got distracted.”

“How distracted?” Bushroot asked, his eyes darting to one of the bags.

“Don’t worry Petalhead, I said we’d get you clothes, we got you some clothes.” Quackerjack tossed one of the bags in Bushroot’s direction and let out a giggle when it smacked into the unsuspecting plant in the face. “I tried my best but it might not fit, I’m not sure most stores carry clothes in twig size.”

“Harhar,” Bushroot said dryly as he opened the bag.

“Hey where’s Liquidator?” Megavolt asked.

“Trying to map out his way through the plumbing,” Bushroot replied. “Turn on the sink and he should be back soon.”

Megavolt glanced at Bushroot, then at a nearby sink. Reaching over very cautiously, Megavolt pushed one of the sink’s handles, then scampered a few steps back as the water started flowing. Sure enough, the water soon began to form the Liquidator’s familiar shape.

“The Liquidator can work well in most conditions,” Liquidator said and he turned off the water and stepped out of the sink. “Which is why I didn’t feel the need to input any requirements when we were choosing a place to spend our time away from home.” The watery dog shook himself slightly, causing Megavolt to flinch. “In retrospect a place with a cleaner plumbing system would have been nice.”

“Yuck! I can imagine.” Quackerjack’s face scrunched up at the idea.

“So is there a reason that trip took so long or…?” Liquidator gestured to Quackerjack.

“While we were out we thought we’d get a few other things,” Megavolt said. 

At this, Quackerjack pulled out another back and dumped it on the floor. About a dozen toys spilled out.

“Oh of course,” Liquidator said. 

“We’ll all my own toys are still in Saint Canard,” Quackerjack said. “I’ve gotta entertain myself somehow.”

“I thought you only liked your own toys,” Bushroot said.

“Yeah for the most part.” Quackerjack picked up one of the toys on the floor and violently ripped its head off so he could peer inside. “But without the proper tools it’s better to use parts from these than start from scratch.”

Bushroot gulped. “Right. And I assume you’ll be buying knives and gunpowder next.”

“That’d be ideal, but if I can’t get those I know how to improvise.”

Bushroot had no idea what that meant and he wasn’t sure he wanted to. Trying to distract himself from those confusing thoughts, Bushroot opened the bag to inspect the clothes Quackerjack had bought for him.

There were actually a decent variety of tops and bottoms in there, and to Bushroot’s surprise, most of them didn’t look too bad. When he looked at them all, he actually found himself thinking that he might actually have picked out some of this himself. There was the standard trench coat and hat, a turtleneck sweater, a jacket with a flower pattern on it, a couple of hats, and even a lab coat. 

“Wow, you actually brought back some wearable stuff,” Bushroot mused, more to himself than to Quackerjack. 

“Yeah. What’d you think I’d bring you?” Quackerjack asked.

“I don’t know. I-I guess I just didn’t think you’d get me stuff I might wear. I didn’t think you’d actually know what I liked.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Quackerjack said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “For your information, I can guess what you like. You’re not exactly the closed off type, and I pay attention a little. I don’t know why you’re surprised that I actually tried to get you stuff you’d like.”

Bushroot smiled, mostly just relieved that he wouldn’t look like-well- like a clown. “Uh-th-thanks for-”

“Besides I’ve had to buy stuff for Sparky before, I know a little bit about shopping for a huge nerd!” Quackerjack said.

Bushroot’s smile disappeared. “Gee, thanks.”

“I also got you this!”

Quackerjack plopped down a large brown pot in front of him, causing the plant to flinch.

“You got me a flower pot?” Bushroot asked.

“Yeah, so you could plant yourself,” Quackerjack said. “Y’know, for when you sleep.”

“I don’t sleep in a flower pot...” Bushroot said. “But, uh, thanks. I’m sure I’ll find some use for it.”

“You’re welcome Bushbrain,” Quackerjack responded with a smirk.

Even the insulting nickname and the smug look of Quackerjack’s face couldn’t get rid of the small bit of happiness that lingered in Bushroot’s mind afterwards at the thought that the insane duck seemed to actually cared about him, at least a tiny bit.


	6. Out and About

“Are you sure you don’t just want to go out in the trench coat and hat?” Bushroot asked. 

“No need!” Liquidator stepped into the flower pot and fell into it in a splash that left him looking nearly indistinguishable from ordinary water. “For a casual stroll there’s no need for me to navigate on my own. Besides the Liquidator now comes in convenient travel size!”

“Well I guess I’ll get some use out of this then,” Bushroot said, picking up the pot. “Though, no offense, but it’s not exactly a great flower pot since it has no drainage holes.”

“Oh sorry,” Quackerjack said, rolling his eyes. “I didn’t know you needed such specific requirements in a flower pot.”

“Oh of course you need drainage holes!” Bushroot said. “If you don’t have holes in it, there’s no place for the water to go.”

“Reggie…”

“And,” Bushroot continued. “If there’s no place for the water to go, then on top of being stuck in stagnant water, then the roots won’t get air and the-“

“Reggie?” Liquidator said, causing the plant to look at him. “I think they get the idea.”

Bushroot turned Quackerjack and Megavolt who were looking at him quizzically. Quackerjack looked slightly amused.

“Right!” Bushroot flushed. “Oh, w-well my point was, it’s much better suited for this th-than for a plant.”

“No, no, go ahead,” Quackerjack teased,grinning. “Sounded like a fascinating topic of conversation. Tell me, Bushy, do you do research before you go shopping for gardening equipment?”

“Believe me, Doctor Bushroot has no shortage of information on proper plant maintenance!” Liquidator said, a hint of pride in his voice. “A lot of which is actually quite interesting! But since we have other plans for this evening I wouldn’t advise it.”

“Yeah,” Quackerjack agreed, gesturing to Megavolt. “I’m sure it’d be like asking Sparky about Tesla coils.”

“Yeah.” Megavolt furrowed his eyebrows. “Wait, what does that mean?”

“Anyway, we were just about to get going weren’t we?” Quackerjack said, linking his arms in Megavolt’s.

“Right!” Megavolt said, forgetting his previous confusion.

In a few minutes the group left, Quackerjack pulling Megavolt along, and Bushroot carrying Liquidator. It didn’t take long after that for Bud to notice that Bushroot was to starting getting visibly uncomfortable. A quick glance out of his container showed nothing out of the ordinary.

“Is there something bothering you?” He asked, his voice low enough that passersby couldn't hear him.

Bushroot grimaced. “I didn’t think about the fact this outfit would be so hot,” he said. He tugged at the neck of the sweater he was wearing. “I wish I could wear less, but I’ve seen what happens when I go in public without a proper disguise.”

“You do realize that even in your disguise, you look like a weirdo talking to a flower pot right?” Megavolt said, butting into the conversation.

“Says the guy who talk to lightbulbs,” Bushroot replied. 

“Yeah? What’s your point?”

Bushroot sighed. “Oh nothing. I’m not sure you can understand the irony.”

“Y’know speaking of lightbulbs,” Megavolt said. “I haven’t actually seen a ton around. No big flashy signs, not a lot of street lights, this place may actually treat lightbulbs somewhat humanely!”

“Well, you know there’s still lightbulbs inside the buildings, right?” Quackerjack said.

“Yeah, I said ‘somewhat,’” Megavolt replied. “I’m still definitely going to have to free a lot of them. Just y’know, nice to not see their enslavement out in the middle of the street.”

It was true that there weren’t as many light fixtures in this city as there were in Saint Canard. There were actually a few things that the four noticed as they navigated the streets of the city.

The first was that, yes, it did draw a bit of attention to them when Bushroot talked to Liquidator out loud. Fortunately, no one really got a good look at the contents of the flower pot, and the watery felon only really emerged when Bushroot told him he wouldn’t be noticed.   
While Bushroot was more interested in his surroundings, the plants and people, Quackerjack, Megavolt, and Liquidator seemed focused on the content of the buildings. Being the odd one out, Bushroot allowed himself to be dragged into various places. 

The second thing they noticed was that there seemed to be a good deal of old buildings in the area. Intricate architecture was scattered around the area, creating some interesting sights. Some of these seemed to be a big draw for tourists. Tourists who…

Third thing, were very wealthy.

It seemed that some higher class tourists favored this city as a destination. The level of wealth Quackerjack and Megavolt saw on their ride here, was the same as the average tourist.

The group couldn’t help but stare at some of the people who passed, decked out in accessories that cost as much money as any one of them could snatch in a small robbery.  
They couldn’t wait until they could openly commit crimes.

It was a few hours later when the group finally thought about having to head back to the hotel. For the fifth time that afternoon, Quackerjack had dragged the group into a food establishment, only for them to leave without buying anything. This time however the group was discussing doubling back the way they came.

“But I’m hungry!” Quackerjack whined. “What's the point of going to a place that has good places to eat, and then not getting anything!”

Liquidator emerged slightly from the flower pot. “Though the Liquidator needs no nutrients to keep himself going, remember that additional food will be required for both of you during our entire stay here. We need to keep our prices low, and our criminal activity even lower! I wouldn’t say that eating there would have been a great deal, the food there wasn’t exactly cheap.”

“Besides, since when did you care about quality food?” Megavolt asked. “From what I’ve seen, you’ll eat anything, even my cooking!”

“You cook?” Bushroot asked.

“I burn things,” Megavolt replied. “Which is how I like it.”

“Just because I can eat anything doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate actual good food.” Quackerjack folded his arms. “But fine, if you wanna eat junk then that’s fine.”

“Well…” Megavolt sighed. “If you really want to eat our or y’know...something, we should probably do it on our own, since those two can’t actually eat.”

“Oh! A play date! That’d be nice,” Quackerjack practically purred. “It’s not as fun without some kind of police chase, but still.”

“Uh, I’m going to go check something out,” Bushroot said, slowly stepping away from the pair. “But if you two want to stay there and keep flirting, go ahead.”

“Oh you’re one to talk!” Megavolt said.

“Yeah.” Quackerjack followed Bushroot, tugging his partner along with him. “We were talking about this earlier, you give us weird looks when we do anything, but you and Liqui can be sooo sappy sometimes.”

Bushroot grew dead silent.

“At least we don’t spend ten minutes coming up with compliments for each other,” Megavolt said. “Have you ever heard how that wet dog talks about you when you’re not around? I think you can put up with a little bit from us if we have to hear that.”

Liquidator poked his head out a little. “The Liquidator will not take heed of criticisms concerning how I talk about my own superb partner. I have no complaints with how you handle your relationship, don’t bring my methods of affection into this.”

“Okay!” Bushroot’s face was red and his voice was a slight bit too loud. “A-anyway, did anyone else notice that-that crowd? I wonder wh-what that’s about, why don’t we check it out?”

The other three exchanged a look. Quackerjack and Megavolt both looked slightly pleased at the flustered reaction they had elicited from the plant. Then the group turned their attention to where Bushroot was pointing.

It seemed there was a decent crowd gathered loosely around what looked to be a fountain. The four moved closer to check it out. When they approached they saw a few informational signs around it.

“Says it’s just an old fountain,” Quackerjack said, reading one of the signs. “And no one’s allowed to touch it? Ugh, then where’s the fun in that?”

“I mean, there are some interesting things about it,” Bushroot said. “Like it says here that-”

“Weren’t we going to head home anyway?” Quackerjack said.

Bushroot frowned. “Yeah, I guess we were.”

“Wait a second,” Megavolt said.

“What?” Quackerjack asked. “You’re interested in a boring old fountain? I thought you didn’t like water?”

Megavolt squinted at the fountain, then a horrified look crossed his face. “Do you see that??”

“See what?” Bushroot asked.

Megavolt grabbed ahold of the plant’s face, and turned it so it was facing the fountain. “Look at that!”

“I don’t see anything,” Bushroot said. “There’s just a bunch of water and lights.”

“Oh no…” Quackerjack’s eyes widened.

“Exactly!” Megavolt said, now very loud. The rest of the group gave him looks imploring him to be a bit quieter. “Some monster stuck those lights there underwater! Imagine those poor things spending all their time in that awful thing!”

“But Megsy, babe, you couldn’t even get them out of there without short-circuiting yourself,” Quackerjack said. 

“I know that Quacky, dear,” Megavolt said, giving his partner a huge pair of puppy-dog eyes. “But maybe you could-”

“Oh no!” Quackerjack shook his head. “I’m not helping you just because you give me that look. Besides, what part of stealing a bunch of lightbulbs from a public fountain that no one’s allowed to touch works with keeping a low profile? I’m pretty sure I’d be spotted immediately!”

“There may be a solution to both problems!” Liquidator said.

Megavolt looked at the flower pot container the watery canine with hope in his eyes.

“The Liquidator can create a distraction and relocate the water, while you liberate your lightbulb pals!” Liquidator said.

“You’d really do that?” Megavolt asked, grinning widely. “That’d be great!”

“No problem! The Liquidator specializes in water-based trickery and manipulation!”

With that, Liquidator jumped out of the pot and into the fountain. Across from where Megavolt and the others stood, small jets of water began to arise from the fountain. Then it began to really move, jumping up, swirling, and bubbling in visually pleasing patterns. Slowly, the crowd started taking notice, and moving away from where the three criminals stood. 

When almost all of the surrounding people where on the other side of the fountain, a wave of water rose up, causing the crowd to make noises of appreciation, and blocking the three from their view. The water in front of the lights pulled back, leaving it open for Megavolt to start removing them. 

After all the lightbulbs were removed and stuffed into various bags and clothing articles, the water settled back down and Liquidator hopped back into the flower pot.

“Let’s get out of here before anyone else notices they’re gone,” Bushroot said.

The others agreed and they quickly absconded with the lightbulbs, heading back towards the hotel.

“Well I’d say that was a good first day of vacation,” Megavolt said, looking very pleased.

“The Liquidator would have to agree!” Liquidator said. “Because the lightbulbs weren’t the only things I helped ‘liberate’ from that fountain.”

“What do you-” Bushroot’s eyes widened as he looked in the flower pot. “Holy cow!”

It seemed that when Liquidator had removed himself from the fountain he had taken a huge amount of coins with him. In fact, he was now taking up much less room in the pot, since much of it was filled with pennies, nickels, dime, and lot, and lots of quarters.

“Seems like the tourists are fond of the whole ‘wishing fountain’ idea,” Liquidator said with a smug grin. “Personally I think they’re going to a better cause now.”

“You mean helping us fund the rest of this vacation?”

“Yep. Like I said, better cause.”


	7. Old habits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Liquidator gets an idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s not much but I was productive so success!!

“What is this stuff?” 

Bushroot looked up at Liquidator’s question.   
It was late, and the two were now the only ones awake. A few hours after they had arrived back Quackerjack had finally pulled Megavolt to bed, leaving the two mutants awake on their own.

Liquidator was looking at himself curiously. One of his arms had been severely tinted green.

“It’s been this color ever since we visited the fountain,” Liquidator said.

“You mean ever since we robbed it.”

“Reggie, when it comes to us, there’s seldom a difference.” Bud let the green tinted arm drip off his body, then sprouted another limb in its place. 

“Y’know, you might not want to let that stuff go,” Bushroot said. “It’s actually kind of valuable.”

Bud’s ears perked up. “It is?”

“Yeah,” Bushroot said. “I mean I was going to mention it at the fountain but I got interrupted! It said on one of the signs that there’s a rare breed of algae in that fountain that turns it that color. People used to think it had healing powers, part of the reason no one is supposed to touch the fountain.”

Bushroot could almost see the thoughts forming in the canine’s mind.

“Oh geez,” Bushroot said.

“Reggie, I think I have an idea!”

“I can see that.”

Bud grabbed the trench coat and hat that Bushroot had left on the floor earlier. “I’m going to head out for a bit, but I’ll be back before you know it!”

“Do you have to?”

Bud frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Y’know, we kinda got a good thing going here. No one knows we’re here, no one is looking for us, there’s no Negaduck,” Bushroot said. “Maybe we should just try to enjoy ourselves for a bit?”

“This is how I enjoy myself Reggie,” Bud said. “Do you just miss having a normal life Reginald?”

Bushroot sighed. “I wasn’t really trying to say that but I guess? It’s just, it’s our first day here and we already started doing all these little things. Can we just go a little while without doing some sort of petty crime or scheme?”

“I think when you’ve been a criminal for so long breaking the law just becomes a bit of a habit,” Bud said.

“Not for me.”

“Yes,” Bud said with a smirk. “You don’t have a habit of breaking the law, you just have a habit of breaking the laws of nature for your own personal gain. That’s completely different.”

“It is!” Bushroot said. “My experiments don’t hurt anyone… intentionally… I mean at least not people who don’t deserve-but that’s besides the point!”

“I get it Reggie,” Bud said. “But hey I promise that I won’t let this get too out of hand. Just one little scheme and then I guarantee that the Liquidator will be on his best behavior for a while!”

“Why do I somehow not believe you?” Bushroot sighed. “But go ahead, it’s not like I can stop you.”

“Listen I’ll be in disguise, no one will recognize me.” Liquidator planted a quick kiss on Bushroot’s cheek. “This won’t get in the way of you relaxing or my name isn’t Bud Flood!!”

With that, he left through the window.  
…

“Spaaarky...”  
Megavolt grumbled and rolled over. 

“Hey Sparky!”

He felt himself being gently shaken for a few moments. Then he heard the creaking of springs. Suddenly the bed beneath him began to shake and before he knew what was happening he’d fallen onto the floor.

“Quackerjaaack!” Megavolt groaned, peeling himself off the floor. “You could’ve just turned on a light or something.”

“The lights are on plughead,” Quackerjack said. “You still wouldn’t wake up!”

Mumbling to himself, Megavolt opened his eyes to see Quackerjack was right. He couldn’t make anything out, but it was very bright. With his hands he began searching for the bedside drawer, only to have his eyewear slipped into his fingers by Quackerjack.

“Thanks,” he said absentmindedly as he placed them on his face.

“Y’know Sparky, it’s not fun for me either when I have to be the one to keep dragging you in and out of bed,” Quackerjack said. 

“Then don’t,” Megavolt said.

“Well if I didn’t you’d be asleep all day!”

Megavolt yawned and stood. He made his way out of the room, Quackerjack following him closely. 

“Well there’s other people here,” Megavolt said. “Why don’t you go bother Liqui or plant...head… ugh I can’t make good insults right now.”

“Well they’re both gone. Besides I always prefer bothering you.”

Megavolt smiled to himself. “I’m sure you do.” As he said this he walked over to the kitchen where there was a single fork lying on the empty counter. Taking it, he made his way over to a electrical socket, and stuck the fork in.

Immediately a surge of electricity shot through him. When it was over he stretched and shook himself out.

“Oh yeah!” Megavolt grinned. “That’s the good stuff!”

“Maybe I should get a taser and shock you every morning. I bet that’d be an easier way to wake you up,” Quackerjack said. 

“Did we not get one?” Megavolt asked. “I thought we had something that one time?”

“We had a cattle prod and a joy buzzer,” Quackerjack said. He giggled. “But those weren’t exactly used for waking you up.”

“Oh yeah.” Megavolt looked around. Then something clicked in his brain. “Hey where are the others?”

“I just told you Sparky, they’re not here!”   
Quackerjack said. “They’ve both been outside for a while.”

“What are they doing?”

…

Bushroot watched the crowd of people surrounding the small stand from the shade of a nearby tree. If there was one thing he admired about his partner, it was his uncanny ability to draw people in.

“Only a thousand dollars a piece!” Liquidator’s voice rang out from across the street. “Quite a bargain for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!”

“Wow, he really does love scamming people doesn’t he?”

Bushroot looked around and saw Megavolt approaching, with Quackerjack trailing alongside him.

“That’s an understatement,” Bushroot said. “He’s been at this for hours.”

“And you’ve just been watching him this whole time?” Megavolt asked.

“Yeah,” Bushroot said, not taking his eyes off the crowded stand. “He’s kinda fascinating. D-did you know, it only took him ten minutes to get a crowd of over forty people? It’s been three hours and the crowd has only gotten bigger. I don’t know how he does it.”

“Yeesh, you’re talking like it’s magic,” Quackerjack said, his face darker than usual. “I’ve seen it before. Guys who talk big draw in the crowds to buy their bullshit, while everyone starts to ignore the actually interesting ideas. It’s nothing special.”

“Yeah…” Megavolt looked at Quackerjack quizzically. “Well I wouldn’t have gone that much into it. But yeah, he’s just selling… what is he selling again?”

“The water from the fountain,” Bushroot said. “It’s worth a lot of money.”

“It is?” Quackerjack asked. “And you didn’t tell us?!”

“Oh I tried to, but you interrupted me!” Bushroot said. 

“Hey, let's not point any fingers,” Quackerjack said. “But I can’t believe all those saps are paying a thousand dollars for water from a crummy old fountain.”

“Well it does contain Chlariaphyta, a very rare species of algae that’s known for being used in some forms of medicine. That’s probably why people thought the water had healing properties back in… in the…” Bushroot trailed off, realizing that he was overexplaining again. “Anyway, my point is that it’s-it’s actually kinda valuable for a good reason.”

“Right, well unless I was an aquatic plant enthusiast, I still wouldn’t think it’s worth that much for fountain water, algae or no algae,” Megavolt said. 

“You wanna go somewhere else until waterboy gets done with his little sale, or are you going to keep staring at him for a few more hours?” Quackerjack asked.

“I think I’ll stay here for a bit. Just to make sure nothing goes wrong since it’s technically illegal to even touch the fountain, which makes it definitely illegal to sell the water,” Bushroot said. “Besides, I have to keep all these layers on to make sure no one recognizes me and the only thing keeping me from sweating to death is the shade of this tree.”

“Suit yourself!” Quackerjack said. Then he grabbed Magavolt’s arm and dragged him away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Chlariaphyta is definitely not a real plant, but i naked it after Chlorophyta, a real type of algae!


End file.
